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Villa Valenti investigation turned over to police

WYNANTSKILL - The investigation into what sparked a fire at Villa Valenti restaurant has been turned over to the police.

The fire broke out on Tuesday night, destroying the popular restaurant.

Investigators spent all night on Wednesday sifting through the debris of what's left of Villa Valenti. They were gone by early Thursday morning, but the investigation is not wrapped up yet. The fire chief says it was turned over to the police department to look into it further.

NewsChannel 13 tried to get in touch with police officials all day Thursday to get a sense of what they're searching for. We're still waiting for more information.

Fire investigators say that it all started in the basement around 7:00 on Tuesday night, at the restaurant on West Sand Lake Road. The owner says the business was closed and no one was inside at the time, but he also says some employees were cooking for the catering part of the business during the day.

It took more than 100 firefighters to battle the blaze. It was still smoldering a bit Thursday morning, more than 24 hours later.

Villa Valenti has been here for more than 60 years. It's a third-generation business. The owner also says that he plans to rebuild.